When Josephine Baker moved to France, her sudden fame opened a world of opportunities for her. Besides performing on stage, she was able to star as a leading lady in a couple of films. In one of her best films Zouzou, her co-star was the French icon Jean Gabin. The son of a turn-of-the-century chansonier, Gabin's early ambition was to follow in his father's footsteps before the cinema took him. He still had the occasional opportunity to sing in movies and on record though he never released a proper album. However, he is credited as the lead artist on a French audio version of Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Vingt Mille Lieues Sous Les Mers) on which he plays the character Captain Nemo. That album came out in 1955 and several compilations of his songs exist (of which I list the most comprehensive).
Here is Jean Gabin's (mostly) complete discography:
Vingt Mille Lieues Sous Les Mers
Maintenant je sais (1974 single)
Quand on se promène au bord de l'eau (1974 single)
But Now I Know (1975 single)
Étoiles de la chanson (1999 compilation album)
Sissle & Blake's stagework led to breakthroughs for a variety of black performers including Josephine Baker. Known primarily as a stage performer (singer/dancer/actress/comedienne), Baker had a fairly respectable recording career both in the United States and France. Like a lot of artists from the first half of the 20th century, her discography (here and elsewhere) is incomplete and her recording career was mostly over by the time albums came into vogue. Her first album here, Chansons Américaines released in 1951, is a compilation of a handful of her French singles from the 30s and 40s.
Here is the discography surrounding Josephine Baker's "debut" album:
I Wonder Where My Baby Is Tonight (1925 single)
Sleepy Time Gal (1925 single)
Who? (1925 single)
Feeling Kind of Blue (1926 single)
That Certain Feeling (1926 single)
Dinah (1926 single)
Bam Bam Bamy Shore (1926 single)
I Want to Yodel (1926 single)
You're the Only One for Me (1926 single)
I've Found a New Baby (1926 single)
Always (1926 single)
Skeedle Um (1926 single)
Breezing Along with the Breeze (1927 single)
Where'd You Get Those Eyes? (1927 single)
Then I'll Be Happy (1927 single)
Hello Bluebird (1927 single)
Blue Skies (1927 single)
He's the Last Word (1927 single)
Bye Bye Blackbird (1927 single)
The Loveliness of You (1927 single)
I Love Dancing (1927 single)
La petite tonkinoise (1930 single)
Pardon si je t'importune (1930 single)
Confessin' (1930 single)
Pretty Little Baby (1930 single)
You're Driving Me Crazy (1930 single)
Aux iles Hawaii (1930 single)
Voulez-vous de la canne a sucre? (1930 single)
Suppose! (1930 single)
Love Is a Dreamer (1931 single)
King for a Day (1931 single)
Sans amour (1932 single)
Si j'étais blanches (1932 single)
Madiana (1933 single)
Madiana (1933 single)
Haiti (1934 single)
Rêves (1935 single)
Sous le ciel d'afrique (1935 single)
Mayari (1936 single)
Nuits de Miami (1936 single)
Partir sur un bateau tout blanc (1936 single)
C'est un nid marchand (1937 single)
Afraid to Dream (1937 single)
I'm Feelin' Like a Million (1937 single)
Vous faites partie de moi (1937 single)
J'ai peur de rêver (1937 single)
Message for the Man in the Moon (1937 single)
J'ai un message pour toi (1937 single)
J'attends votre retour (1937 single)
Nuit d'alger (1937 single)
Sur deux notes (1939 single)
O mon Tommy (1940 single)
Brazil (1944 single)
L'amour est un jeu (1944 single)
Paris Chérie (1944 single)
Pardon si je t'importune (1944 single)
Paris, Paris (1949 single)
Minuit (1949 single)
Boneca de pixe (1949 single)
Y a pas trois moyens (1951 single) Chansons Américaines
Complete Recorded Works 1926-1927 (compilation album)
Clip from the film Zouzou starring Josephine Baker
